Foteviken Viking Market

About 500 Vikings from all over the world bring the Foteviken Viking Reserve back to the Viking Age thanks to a rich programme of events and a wealth of leisure and educational activities in a faithfully reconstructed Viking town...

Geographical, cultural and historical context

Höllviken, a town in Vellinge municipality, in Swedish county of Skåne, is located close to both the city of Malmö (about 25 km southwards) and the Øresund Bridge connecting Sweden and Denmark. The town is a beloved summer vacation destination thanks to its sand beaches and the historical sites which date back to the time of the Vikings. The cultural heritage of the Viking Age is indeed present in the surrounding landscape, with the area being once of great importance for the Danish kings as it was part of the Danish Kingdom until 1658, as well as the setting of the Dano-Swedish wars over centuries. The peninsula on which the town is situated is unique because it is surrounded by two different seas: Öresund and The Baltic Sea.

The Foteviken Viking Reserve - Fotevikens Museum is an archaeological open-air museum aimed to portray the daily life in a town during the late Viking Age and early Middle Ages (around year 1134 AD), featuring about 23 faithfully reconstructed and furnished houses and homesteads. To find out more about the site please visit our dedicated page, click here. During the Viking Age there was a big summer market at Foteviken, which, according to the Faroe saga, was the largest in Scandinavia.

Event description and programme

Today the Viking market is reenacted every year attracting hundreds of Vikings reenactors and enthusiasts from all over the world, as well as tourists of all ages and interests. The Viking Week, as the whole event is called, includes the Foteviken Market and the Battle of Foteviken. Vikings arriving at the Museum of Foteviken earlier than the market uses the Viking city as a meeting place for craftsmen to exchange experiences and show each other techniques. The “Crafts Days” takes place at the hands-on area for historic workshops just outside the reconstructed Viking town, featuring several stations with historic, while during the weekend at the Foteviken Market craft trading and exchange is open for everyone, and a wealth of interactive workshops are offered to the visitors, such as blacksmithing, tablet weaving ribbon weaving, dye colouring, cooking, wood carving and more. The visitors can also enjoy the riding on Icelandic horses, or simply stroll around in a Viking town full of activities with lots of market stalls selling everything from beautiful handmade jewellery to swords.

Other major events taking place during the final weekend of the Viking week are:

The Battle of FotevikenThe reenactment of the Battle of Foteviken, which took place at the marketplace at Foteviken on June 4, 1134 AD. The Viking fighting shows are arranged, representing the events of the historical battle, in which the king of Skåne, Erik Emune, defeats his uncle, king Niels and his son, Prince Magnus, and where Magnus is killed with all his men. Battle of Foteviken is an element with a long history. There are few places for Viking reenactors where there has been a kind. One is obviously Hastings in 1066 where every five years, a major hit. Another actually stood at the marketplace of Foteviken in 1134 AD.

The Viking Games OpenAn exciting individual competition that is open to both Vikings and visitors alike, and in which contestants will compete in five different games that put precision, balance and strength to the test. Foteviken Museum started with Viking Games Open in 2015 in connection with the 20th anniversary and will continue this special tradition. On Saturday the first three segments take place while the final two competition rounds are held on Sunday. The competition concludes with an awards ceremony with a big prize for the winner!

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